This Article is So Wrong on So Many Levels!
May 9, 2011
This article is wrong on so many levels. The author of this article states that the letter of the law is followed when children are taken. She also says that caseworkers don’t have the ability to snatch children without a signed order from the judge.
There are so many things wrong it is almost laughable.
To begin with children are snatched daily just on the word of a caseworker and we know they lie. It has been proven over and over again. The Bahrona Case is a prime example the caseworker and guardian et libum both stated there was no family trying to get the children when in fact the Aunt and Uncle in Texas had been trying almost since day one. They had even written the judge several times.The next dumb statement is that the letter of the law is followed- really! Parents are denied their constitutional rights on every level, Their 4th, 6th, and 1st rights under the Constitution are violated from the get go. Parents are threatened, harrassed and abused by CPS from day one.
They are considered guilty before they ever get in front of a biased judge who also stands to gain under Title IV funding.
Maura Corrigan can try to spin this anyway she wants to- it still walks like a duck- looks like a duck and smells like a duck. In other words children are stolen for profit on a daily basis especially since the economy is in the tank. Parents are charged with deprivation and neglect which are criminal charges but yet they are never charged criminally- if they were the case would be open as it would be in criminal court. We who are fighting this corrupt system know they all including the judges work under the veil of secreacy in order to be able to steal children for profit. Ms. Corrigan needs to quit while she is still ahead. Before she gets in over her head.
Maura Corrigan Director Michigan Department of Human Services
BY MAURA D. CORRIGAN
DETROIT FREE PRESS GUEST WRITER
Issues of child welfare have dominated the headlines in the past few months. As the current director of the Department of Human Services and a former justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, I appreciate any spotlight on the plight of our state’s most vulnerable children. But if we are all to work together to protect children and ensure that they are living in safe and stable homes, we must understand the system in place to protect them.
Contrary to popular belief, our Child Protective Services caseworkers do not decide on their own to remove children from their homes. Only judges can issue orders removing children from their homes; such orders are issued only in the most extreme circumstances.
In fact, fewer than 8% of the cases investigated by CPS in 2010 result in children being placed in another home to protect their safety. Law enforcement sometimes removes children from home in emergencies to protect them from immediate threats of harm. In those situations, CPS still must obtain a court order before accepting the child from law enforcement for purposes of placement in a safe home.
A dramatic picture is often painted of parents being caught unaware when their child is to be removed from the home. Sometimes the parents cannot be provided advance notice of an order of removal, as it may threaten the safety of the child.
Both the parents and the child are represented by an attorney before the judge when the case is being weighed. The parents’ attorney is responsible for bringing to light relevant facts, and only when all the evidence is considered will a judge make the determination whether to place a child away from his or her home.
The best place for children is with their own families. Many programs are in place to help parents acquire the skills they need to care for their children — and these are the most prescribed actions when dealing with child abuse and neglect cases. But in that small percentage of cases where children are unsafe or at imminent risk of harm, we must take action to find a safe haven.
Under Michigan law, DHS is bound to protect the privacy of the children in our care. We cannot share the background that led to our actions or the facts that would make the court’s decision to remove a child clear. This can lead to the perpetuation of misinformation and/or a mischaracterization of the actions taken in a case. Sadly, our social workers who are so committed that they are willing to face horrors each day to protect children are demonized.
A child’s welfare is first and foremost the responsibility of the family. But when a family is unable, or unwilling, to care for their children, the courts, law enforcement, community partners and DHS all share responsibility for ensuring that children are safe and that families receive the support and services needed to achieve successful reunification.
Maura D. Corrigan became the director of the Michigan Department of Human Services in January and is a former Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice.
"The phenomenon of children dying in state care is one that deserves special scrutiny. We know that there are many more deaths than made the newspapers. The total number of children who die annually while under state care is unknown. While multiple agencies track their numbers, no central tracking agency exists and tracking methods differ between agencies. That's one of the issues should be addressed." Justice Maura Corrigan (This is the same Maura Corrigan that is now mismanaging the Michigan DHS!!)
ReplyDeleteShe was more concerned that the state was not properly recording the deaths of children in the foster system; not why children died in the system.
She also bragged about the bonuses the state received by adopting children out of the system (where did they come from? Taken by CPS).
She bragged that 50.1% of all children removed were reunited with their family. ONLY 50.1%? That means CPS claims that half of all families don't want their children back! The truth is one of at least two scenarios:
CPS adds new requirements when the list is completed
CPS fails to write a plan, then tells the court the parents are in noncompliance with the plan (which has yet to be written)
Parents have no say to testify in court. Everything is already decided before the court session even starts.
Along with the 1st, 4th & 6th amendment Rights, CPS is in violation of 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th,13th & 14th.
CPS removed my daughter without a signed court order. The court admitted that the law was broken, "But we do it all the time." I guess that is supposed to be a valid excuse!
CPS & the foster home ran out of life needing medication. However, they couldn't just call the clinic to get a supply. They had to follow protocol, which requires applying for medicaid & waiting 2-3 days for approval! They called insulin an incidental medication! My daughter was forced to go 17 1/2 hours without insulin due to negligence by the foster home & CPS. Wait, abuse & neglect by the foster home & CPS aren't really abuse & neglect; it is protecting your child! Endangering the life of a child is lagal if you have a license!
CPS accepts anonymous complaints, illegally violates parent's and children's civil and constitutional rights. They also assume the parent and child are lying during the illegally held interviews. They also claim that the material gathered from these interviews can be turned over to law enforcement to pursue criminal charges against the parent, but claim they do not have to read Miranda Rights to the parents.
ReplyDeleteI am concerned that CPS feels justified in trumping federal laws during investigations. Parents and children are told that if they refuse to conduct the interview that CPS can take custody to force the interview. CPS also assumes that the parents and children are lying, so they can take "emergency" custody without a court order or evidence to prove the accusations are true!
CPS and the courts do not consider the emotional trauma inflicted on the parents and children when taking children away from the parents; children's emotional well being especially! Mandatory reporters can hide behind the mandatory standing and can make falsified accusations and know they are protected from prosecution. Even if the complaints turn out to be untrue, CPS has no desire to investigate as to why the accusation was made.
CPS even uses previous unsubstantiated complaints as evidence of neglect, even if the investigators believe the complaints to have zero merit. CPS also allows an investigator to sit alone with a child even if the investigator is a middle aged male and the child is a teenage girl. This violates federal sexual harassment laws, but is allowed under state law. This also allows CPS to make claim of statements by the child even if the child never made them, or allows CPS to withhold any statements the child does make from their report.
They are allowed to provide false statements, twist the child's & parents words, & make unprovable statements about the parent.
I was told that CPS did a "thorough" investigation into my complaint, but at no time interviewed my daughter or me. All they had to go on were their own files & records. They do not answer to anyone, except themselves in complaints. Even the Office of Children's Ombudsman has never found CPS to be guilty of CPS protocol. Even perjury, threats, knowingly providing inaccurate statements & withholding life saving medications are not in violation of protocol.
While being "protected", my daughter was refused her legal right to be at the initial preliminary hearing or the first family planning meeting. She was denied insulin for 5 1/2 hours by CPS because the doctor had not supplied enough insulin initially, but denied that they had committed negligence! CPS also refused to take her to the hospital when she stated that she felt she needed to go. My daughter had already graduated from high school, but was told by CPS that she would be forced to attend school because CPS does not have to obey state law and recognize her diploma; even though the governor, state legislature and the Department of Education recognized her home school diploma as a legal document verifying her graduation! CPS also denied her access to a phone or computer and did not allow her to leave the house unattended. CPS also told her she had to show the foster caregiver taking blood sugar readings and injecting insulin, to which my daughter refused. My daughter also told a foster care worker that she was not happy at that house and she was told she would be placed in a residential home with several girls where she would more than likely get beat up every day. This is how foster care "protects" our children!?!? This same worker also refused to tell what services they offered then told my daughter that I had refused any services from them.